Independence Day: Remembering J&K’s Unsung Heroes of Freedom and the 1947 India-Pakistan War

 

 

 

 

 

 Brigadier Rajinder Singh Jamwal

Jammu, Jammu & Kashmir

 

 

Brigadier Rajinder Singh Jamwal, also remembered as the Saviour of Kashmir, was an officer in the Jammu and Kashmir State Forces who died fighting during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–1948.

 

 

He and his troops held on to their positions in Uri for three days from 23rd October 1947 to 26th October 1947. They repelled waves of enemy attack and stood until the last bullet. On 27th October 1947, the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir signed the instrumentation of accession with India. India troops quickly rushed in to support Brigadier Rajinder Singh.

 

These three days were crucial because if Srinagar would have fallen, then Kashmir might never have been part of India.

 

 

Brigadier Rajinder Singh was honoured posthumously with the MahaVir Chakra by Army chief Field Marshall K.M.Carriapa on 30th December 1949.

 

  

Brigadier Khuda Baksh

Kathua, Jammu & Kashmir

 

 

Brigadier Khuda Baksh was born in a Gujjar family of Jammu and Kashmir on 22 August 1904. In 1922, Khuda Baksh got commissioned in state forces as second Lieutenant and achieved the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in 1937. During the Second World War, he meticulously commanded the second JK Rifles. For the great valor and courage that he displayed during the second world war, Khuda Baksh was presented with scrolls of honor and alsoallotted land in Multan. Later in 1946, he attained the rank of Brigadier. He was also a proud recipient of orders from the British empire. His services were greatly appreciated by Maharaja Hari Singh and the then Commander in Chief of the Indian Army.

 

 

Due to his professional capabilities and wide experiences, he was given the charge of the prestigious position of Chief of the staff of the state forces and was stationed at the Jammu brigade. Brigadier N.S.Rawat was first in command of this brigade.

 

 

At the time of the Pakistan-led tribal invasion of Kashmir in 1947, the Jammu cantonment was under his charge. However, owing to the constant threat of tribal invasion and his well-known military expertise, Khuda Baksh was also deployed on an important military operation to provide and sustained support for the defense of the frontiers.

 

 

On the intervening night of October 22, 1947, when the tribal raiders from NWFP supported by the Pakistan army infiltrated into the Indian territory of Jammu and Kashmir, there was only one battalion, the 5th and the bodyguard cavalry under the Jammu brigade commanded by N.S.Rawat and Khudabaksh. Since 17 October. The brigade had spread all along the border from Madhopur to Manawar.

 

 

Allegedly incensed by atrocities against fellow religionists in Poonch and Jammu, the Pakistani raiders accompanied by the local Poonch rebels invaded Kashmir. The tribesmen engaged in mass killings, looting, vandalism, and plunder. Thousands of innocent men and women were either mercilessly killed or displaced.

 

 

The tribal raid of 1947 proved disastrous particularly for the Hindus and Sikh residents of those areas who were forced to leave their homes and hearth and were displaced from Muzaffarabad Mirpur, Kotli, Bhimber, Gilgit, Baltistan, Poonch, Deva Batala, and adjoining areas.

 

 

As Brigade Commander, Jammu, Brigadier Khuda Baksh organized his troops into cohesive teams and managed the smooth movement of lakhs of Indo-Pak refugees through the state of J&K in 1947. His vision and strategy proved extremely helpful in transporting the people to refugee camps organized in the nearby safer areas. These people were categorized by the state governments as displaced persons from Pakistan-occupied areas of J&K (POJK) instead of refugees. The maneuver and decision-making capability exhibited by Khuda Baksh even during the disturbed and complex operating environment of Pakistani tribal raids of 1947 was praiseworthy.

 

 

After serving his nation for a long time as a military officer, Khuda Baksh endeavored to work for the welfare of his community. He was deeply pained to see their deplorable condition. Hence to bring them socially, educationally, and economically at par with the other sections of society, he worked tirelessly. As an eminent philanthropist and a great votary of education, Khuda Baksh firmly believed that education was one of the primary instruments through which the community could exert significant and broader social improvement. As such, the process of economic, social, and political development was firmly tied to education.

 

 

Thus, he made strenuous efforts to educate his fellow community members and attempted to ameliorate their socioeconomic status in society. This left an indelible mark on his career. He left this world on 25 June 1976. To commemorate his great contribution to securing national interest and his tireless efforts to educate the tribal Gujjar community, a school was also opened in 1994 in his name as Brigadier Khuda Baksh Memorial Public Higher Secondary School, Gujjar Colony, Jammu followed by a Culture Centre and a library in the year 1996 under the aegis of Gurjar Desh Charitable trust.

 

 

Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir

 

 

Lieutenant General Kashmir Singh Katoch was born in 1915 in Srinagar. His father Major General Janak Singh was an officer of the Jammu and Kashmir State Forces and was later given the charge of the Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir.

 

 

From his early childhood days, Kashmir Singh Katoch, like his father, had a deep passion to serve his nation. While he was growing up, the socio-political ambience of the country during the struggle for independence influenced his ideology to a greater extent. Katoch always wanted to protect the motherland and as a way of giving something back to her, he decided to join the Army. He did his military training at the Military Academy, Dehradun and completed his course in 1936.

 

 

After being commissioned, he was attached to the Ist Battalion, East Surrey Regiment for a year. He was posted to the 6th battalion Frontier Force Rifles (FFR, now the first Frontier Force Regiment of Pakistan) on August 10, 1937. On 19 April, he was attached to the 120th training battalion Frontier Force Rifles. Further, looking at his impressive record, Katoch was appointed by the British government to fight in World War IInd. He was the Commanding Officer of the Dogra company of 6th battalion Frontier Force Rifles. The battalion served in Italy and fought in the battle of Monte Cassino. When the Pathan company got severely mauled, the Dogra Company cleared many of the machine gun nests. As a mark of appreciation for his valour, Katoch was awarded the Military Cross. Within a short time that followed, at the age of 31 only, Katoch became a lieutenant Colonel in the British Indian Army and by October, 1942 held the rank of Lieutenant, War Substantive Captain temporary Major.

 

 

During the Pakistan led tribal invasion of Jammu and Kashmir in 1947, Maharaja Hari Singh besides requesting the government of India for military aid, also asked for the secondment of officer Kashmir Singh Katoch to head the State forces. Katoch, then a Colonel, was chosen for the challenging job. However, he very humbly denied this offer as he felt that he was too junior to serve as the Chief of Staff and advised the Maharaja to appoint a senior officer such as Brigadier Rajinder Singh for the said post.

 

 

Katoch was then appointed as the military adviser to Maharaja Hari Singh. However, Brigadier Rajinder Singh was martyred while fighting to save the region from the Pakistani raiders within a few days of the Pakistani tribal invasion leaving no choice to Katoch other than to succeed him. With the accession of J&K to the Indian Union on 26 October 1947, the State Forces came under the command of the Indian Army and Colonel Katoch officiated as the commanding officer of the State Forces. He successfully monitored the army operations against the Pakistani raiders in Kashmir Jammu and Ladakh region. His military acumen, organizational capacity and strategic maneuvering ultimately flushed out Pakistani raiders from the region, saving the territory and its people.

 

 

He achieved multiple milestones in his career, holding a series of posts till 1970. Katoch was promoted as Colonel in September, 1955 and rose to the rank of Brigadier in September,1958. In 1960, he was promoted as Major General and was appointed Chairman, Permanent Joint Planning Committee on Feb 4, 1963. He was promoted as acting Lieutenant General on May 1, 1963 and further his earlier experiences led him to command the XV Corps in the Kashmir Valley. It was the main force that fought against Pakistan’s Operation Gibraltar during the Indo-Pak War of 1965. In June 1966, Katoch was appointed Vice Chief of the Army Staff (VCOAS). Katoch’s patriotism, his service for the nation and achievements in the civil service did not go unnoticed and the Government of India awarded him with the third highest civilian honour, the Padma Bhushan in 1965. He retired in 1970 and left for heavenly abode on 25 April, 2007.

 

 

 

R.N.Kao

Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir

 

 

Pandit Rameshwar Nath Kao was born on 2 October 1917, in the holy city of Banaras in Uttar Pradesh to a Kashmiri Hindu Pandit family who had migrated from the Srinagar district of the Kashmir valley to Kashmiri Mohalla in Lucknow. Kao was only six when his father passed away and he was brought up by his uncle Pandit Triloki Nath Kao.

 

 

Rameshwar Nath received his early education from Baroda. He did his matriculation in 1932 and intermediate in 1934 and later attained a degree in Bachelor of Arts from Lucknow University. He was well-versed in Persian, Sanskrit, and Urdu and could read, write and speak fluently in all three languages. Kao did his Master in English from Allahabad University. Later, he joined classes in law, however, later, he passed India’s highly coveted Civil Service Examination and joined the Indian Imperial Police in 1940 and could not complete the law course from Allahabad University.

 

 

Thereafter, he was posted at Kanpur as Assistant Superintendent of Police. He then realized the need for intelligence training to solve the complex issues of law and order. Hence he was one of the first Indians to join the Intelligence Bureau which was entirely manned by British officers. There he got deep insights into the Colonial administration and its support structures in Indian society.

 

 

Later, he used these insights and experiences to undermine these support structures with the subversive potential to put Indian society on sound footing. Though he did awesome work in this field his contributions remained unsung.

 

 

In June 1947, he was deputed to the Intelligence Bureau when it was being reorganized under the aegis of B.N. Mullick. He was put in charge of VIP Security which was also assigned the duty of looking after the security ring of Prime Minister Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru. During this assignment, he was appreciated for his good handling of the job.

 

 

Further, the intelligence agency felt the need for a highly specialized organization that could look after the gathering of technical intelligence, run clandestine operations into Tibet, and even operate behind enemy lines across the Himalayan frontier. In order tobifurcate the task of collecting external and internal intelligence, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) was created. This is where R.N. Kao got pitch-forked into a prominent role

 

 

The Indian debacle in the 1962 Indo-China war followed by the failure to predict Operation Gibraltar (1965) ed many changes in the Indian security establishment, especially in the intelligence set-up. After 1966, Rameshwar Nath Kao along with P.N. Husker, a Kashmiri Pandit played a seminal role in Indira Gandhi’s momentous decisions between 1967 and 1975.

 

 

Husker as Secretary to the then PM helped R.N. Kao to create a separate Foreign Intelligence organization which today is known as Research and Analysis Wing (RAW). As founder of India’s external intelligence agency, Kao built R&AW into such a competent and formidable organization that within three years of its inception it was able to harness Pakistan’s anti-Bengali campaign in the then East Pakistan to India’s advantage , leading to the creation of Bangladesh in 1971.

 

 

For his professional capability and integrity, Kao held an international prestige. Through the creation of Bangladesh, he was able to provide the much needed security to India from its eastern flank. His other important contribution was the snatching away of Himalayan region of Sikkim from under China’s nose and making it a part of the Indian Union. The remarkable work that he did in building up a clandestine relationship with Mossad, the Israeli intelligence agency, yielded desirable consequences in strengthening the bond of trust between the two nations. He was also the architect of India’s elite National Security Guards (NSG).

 

 

After nurturing R&AW for nine years, Kao retired but Mrs. Indira Gandhi insisted on giving him an extension and Kao was appointed as her Security advisor and did valuable and quiet work during this period.

 

 

He was a great visionary and worked for India’s national interests ceaselessly. He displayed pragmatism in his approach and commitment to pursue national interests. Yet he showed his disapproval of the declaration of emergency administration in the country.

 

 

Kao displayed strong pride in his Kashmiri ancestry and was firmly rooted in Indian civilization. Even in his retirement days when he was not involved with any affairs of the State, he kept himself fully informed about the happenings in the valley.

 

 

Kao was a profound patriot whose life-long passion was to strengthen India’s national security

 

 

Pt. R. N. Kao who changed India’s geography remained unsung and honored. Hardly our younger generation knows about his great contribution to India’s national security and independence. He was really an extra-ordinary spymaster who established some rare post-independence institutions in a tumultuous era when the cold war was at its highest fury and Pakistan’s hostility was unremitting. He had been the second biggest name in Indian intelligence after that of his one-time boss B.N. Mullick, who ran the entire intelligence set-up throughout the Nehruvian era and after.

 

 

He would always be remembered as an institution builder, a gentleman who shaped much of R&AW culture and ethos in its early years. The R&AW makes it a point to celebrate each achievement remembering R.N. Kao. The organization holds an annual lecture named as R.N. Kao Memorial Lecture and has recently named its training institute as R.N. Kao Training Academy.

 

 

He was an institutional builder of high ranking. Rarely in the intelligence world do individuals arise around whom entire institutions are built and whose personality leaves indelible marks on the society as a whole. His personal contributions to an exciting and significant chapter of India’s history should have been written in the letters of gold. He was the real author of India’s intelligence service history and has been described as a master spy of the 20th century. Kao passed away in the early hours of 20 January 2002. The glorious chapter in the history of Indian intelligence has ended.

 

 

 

Labh Singh

Jammu, Jammu & Kashmir

 

Labh Singh was a lieutenant in the 4th Battalion of Dogra Regiment who was working under the command of Colonel Narain Singh during the Pakistani tribal raids of 1947. Not much is known about his early life and career. However, on account of his superlative quality of war tactics and fighting skills, Labh Singh, during the tribal raids, was given the command of a Hindu company of the 4th battalion with a detachment of 3 mortars and a platoon of B company located at Kohala Barsala.

 

 

On 22 October, 1947, when Muzaffarabad and Domel were attacked by the Pakistan Led tribal raiders, Labh Singh came to know through the state police force about the fate that had befallen on the battalion headquarters. However, he was not clear about the further course of action to be followed due to the lack of communication between him and his commanding officer Colonel Narain Singh. Therefore, he decided to hold on to his posts till some clear picture of the situation emerged. Further, on 24 October, in a meeting with two British officers of the Pakistani army, Labh Singh was warned about the impending attack of the raiders and was offered a safe passage to shift his company to Rawalpindi where they could join the Sikh and Gurkha troops of Indian army who were in the process of being repatriated to India. However, the condition was that they had to surrender all their weapons before being allowed to proceed to Rawalpindi. Being a selfless, loyal and committed soldier of the state forces, Labh Singh rejected the proposal out of hand and boldly accepted to fight to death than to surrender for a life of dishonor.

 

 

The same evening the Pakistani garrisons began to be reinforced on the other side of the Kohala bridge. On the early morning of 25 October, Labh Singh got the news of the martyrdom of Narain Singh, the commander of the 4th battalion of the state forces, along with other Dogra officers and was also informed that that the main force of the enemy had left for Srinagar leaving behind a sizeable portion to deal with Kohala Barsala positions and that a major attack could be expected anytime. Now it became clear to Labh Singh that all was lost and he would be serving no useful purpose by holding on to his positions. It was at this juncture that Labh Singh realized the gravity of the situation and displayed greater courage and presence of mind by deciding to withdraw during the intervening night of 25-26 October.

 

 

Before the enemy could attack, Labh Singh along with his forces immediately shifted to Topa Hill, an area that dominated the route of withdrawal. However, owing to the tactical importance of Topa hill, the enemy engaged all his energies there and their constant presence in the area, holding positions between Topa hills and Dan gali made the further withdrawal of Labh Singh and his company all the more an uphill task. However, the war strategy executed by Labh Singh and the army soldiers under his command greatly helped their company to carve out a safe passage to safer areas. With his in-depth indoctrination of the soldiers in the name of the nation, Labh Singh motivated them to do or die for the sake of their motherland. Reminding them of their military roles, he instructed them to keep presence of mind and execute the commands quickly and intelligently even under the most difficult conditions. While advancing down along the Topa ridge, as per the strategy devised by Labh Singh, Naik Makhan Singh, a soldier of his company crawled close to the enemy position and pounced upon the sentry and killed him with his sword. Another soldier of the company named Naik Chhaju Ram hurled a grenade in the midst of the 20 sleepingenemy, while most of them were killed, the rest were riddled with bullets.

 

 

Bewildered by the sudden attacks, the enemy fled from all other positions along the ridge and joined up at its main position at Dan Gali. However, the state forces captured the enemy’s position at Dan Gali only after about one hour’s fighting. The commander of the enemy post Subedar Ghulam Mohammad (Ex- Baluch Regiment) and eight of his men were taken prisoners and a big haul of arms and ammunition comprising of about 8000 rounds of 303 ammunition, 21 hand grenades and 55 pathan rifles proved most useful to the troops of the state force.

 

 

As Labh Singh and his troops were also entrusted with the most crucial responsibility of escorting the refugees swarming from the nearby villages to the camps organized for them in safer areas, he issued the Pathan rifles to the leaders of the refugees for their self defense and the protection of their caravans and started his journey towards Bagh. So frightened and shaken was the enemy that it maintained a distance from the advancing army of Labh Singh and didn’t even dare disturbing the peaceful night that the column spent at Awera. On the way Labh Singh and his company were joined by a number of Sikh jathas coming from the different areas ravaged by the tribal raiders. He courageously took the responsibility of their safety and with about 9000 refugees held in the middle of the column with military detachments in their front and rear, Labh Singh boldly advanced further on his way towards Bagh.

 

 

On their way at Chikargali, about 100 local Muslims armed with muskets, swords and axes and abetted by their co-religionist Pakistani soldiers attacked the column from all directions. However, Labh Singh did not lose heart. A firm counterattack organised by the column under the able command of Labh Singh supported by strong Sikh jathas from among the refugees finally took a heavy toll on the enemy. Many of them were dead and wounded and left behind seven rifles, one thousand rounds of 303 ammunition and some milk, butter and parathas that were actually badly needed by the column at that time. However, along with the soldiers of the column, unfortunately, some brave Sikhs of the refugee jathas (groups) were also martyred. A person with a deep sense of empathy, cross cultural sensitivity and reverence for the martyrs, Labh Singh did not leave their dead bodies at the mercy of scavengers and even in the most critical situation, he and his men cremated their bodies properly before the column commenced its move forward. Further, with the help of the guidelines provided by the local Sikh jathas, he and his troops continued to withdraw through the night of 28-29 October till the column reached Nanga Pir where again it was attacked by a large mob of local Muslims surrounded by 60 to 70 men in uniform armed with rifles and machine guns who were later identified as Muslim deserters from No. 5 Garrison Police Company and the 4th Jammu and Kashmir Infantry. The enemy formed a ring around the column and came closer to the column, thus, making any break a difficult task for them. The ammunition had already exhausted to a dangerously low level and Labh Singh and his column came under do or die situation. However, a joint counter attack launched by him and his three platoons along with the trained volunteers from the Sikh Jathas proved successful and the enemy was finally thrown back. While a large number of the enemy was killed, the column suffered casualties and a few Sikh refugees also lost their lives.

 

 

Though they were marching towards a safer destination at Bagh but Labh Singh being out of contact with the rest of his army personnel during all these days, was not sure if Bagh where he was leading his column to was still being held by the state forces or lost to the enemy. Therefore, he decided to harbor for the night at BaniPasri, just 5 kms before Bagh. Meanwhile, a representative of the refugees lured by the Pathan agents contacted the enemy commander for offering some cash as the price for the refugees being granted a safe passage to Poonch. The enemy commander took the money but made him a prisoner and tried extracting information regarding the fighting state of the troops in the column. Fortunately, the refugee painted a very grim picture of the column which made the enemy commander to believe that the troops were not in a position to fight back for the lack of ammunition. He entered the camp at Bani Pasari with only a few men while the rest of his men remained huddled together on a piece of high ground just in front of the platoon. As the fact remains, the Dogras at that time really had very limited ammunition left with them, however, as soon as the enemy commander entered the camp, Labh Singh and his Dogra platoons opened fire on him and his men huddled on the high ground. Not many could have escaped the deadly fire. As soon as this fight ended, the Dogra forces came under the heavy enemy fire from a hill dominating their camp. Without being panicked, the Dograsunder the command of Lieutenant Labh Singh kept their morale sky high and immediately launched an immediate attack on the hill with three platoons while the fourth stayed back in the camp for the protection of the refugees. The enemy was successfully evicted which opened the way for the last leg of the march to Bagh. Meanwhile, the Garrison commander, Lieutenant Colonel Maluk Singh had sent a company under Lieutenant Mahatam Singh to bring the column safely to Bagh. Now the two companies together escorted the refugees to Bagh. The joy among the refugees and the troops of Labh Singh’s column was great as at the end of a seven-day grueling and harrowing experience, they finally reached a safe place at Bagh on 31 October, 1947. At that moment, they even seemed to have forgotten their sorrow and anguish of the heavy loss of life and property that they suffered during this long trek to safety.

 

 

Undoubtedly, Labh Singh displayed a great valour during the Pakistani tribal invasion of October, 1947 and executed his duty with full determination and successfully carried out the rescue operation thereby saving the lives of thousands of refugees in and army personnel of the J&K State forces. Of course, during the course of this long journey, they witnessed several stiff encounters with the enemy, but Labh Singh and his troops even while facing a sure death overcame all the great odds with an unwavering will and ensured the security of the Indian territory. Really, it was a glorious saga of heroism, loyalty, integrity, and patriotism of Labh Singh and his troops.

 

 

 

 

Dewan Singh was born on 25 December, 1919 in the border village of Pallanwala in tehsil Akhnoor of district Jammu. He received his Primary education from his native place Pallanwala and Maharaja Hari Singh High School, Akhnoor